Best Places to Live and Unschool - Page 3

[umami_mommy]

Originally Posted by claddaghmom

What about somewhere warmer and closer to the ocean? Along SC, NC, FL?

all of NC seems very HSing friendly, though not as crunchy/progressive.

[vegemamato]

another vote for Portland :

and for Texas :

we are moving from Portland (well, Lake Oswego) to Austin in August.. I will def miss it here, as I grew up here and we have had a ton of fun going everywhere/doing everything, but at least we will be moving somewhere else that is just as unschool friendly (though we are doing a charter for my oldest this year, we will be learning together next!).. so,we're thrilled about either locations

if you do decide to come to Portland- I am working on preparing a list of green family resources for my blog and I will gladly pm it to you.. it'll be a bit of time before I get around to that though

GL!!

[Ahimsa]

Update

I am moving to Portland next month, and from there I will be checking out Corvallis, Eugene, and other parts of Oregon. I hope I get a chance to meet some of you Oregon moms.

[cottonwood]

If you are planning to visit Corvallis let me know, we have weekly park days and an occasional brunch that would be a good casual way to meet people. Are you going to the Life is Good Conference? Plenty of Oregon unschoolers will be there too!

[Marimami]

Originally Posted by umami_mommy

all of NC seems very HSing friendly, though not as crunchy/progressive.

Actually, there are pockets of very crunchy/progressive areas of NC...most notably the Carrboro/Chapel Hill parts of the Triangle and around Asheville.

Holli

[doublyblessed]

Originally Posted by fourlittlebirds

If you are looking for a small town in Oregon, intimate feel, lots of unschoolers, I'd recommend Corvallis. It rains a lot here (sigh) but if you've lived in Seattle, you already know what that's like. Eugene is bigger than Corvallis, it's not any more progressive politically, but it does have more of an alternative culture. I think it's expensive (that goes for all of the PNW,) but moving from Boulder you might not think so.

I'm interested to see other responses, because I'd like to stay in the PNW, but wonder about cheaper, sunnier areas. I've been casually looking into Medford, which is a drier climate (sunnier) and has a lot of old houses that are not so expensive, and it's close to Ashland where the Shakespearean Festival is. I've had Bend recommended to me, but I'm skeptical, as that's more desert area and also a newer town.

i live in bend. it is high desert but there are areas that aren't juniper-ish, like where i live...ponderosa pine paradise! and there are huge snow topped mountains here so close you could just reach out and touch them from your house or wherever you are here. the weather is mostly sunny here, like 320 days per year...and its a mild climate even when it snows, which is nothing much unless you are atop the mtns... there is an unschooling group here...its small. and i'm sure there are more of us here that don't go to the group meet-ups... there are more snobby rich and pretentious types here than i can count...makes me miss marin county as there were those there too but sooo many more really cool alternative people there.

anyway, yeah. there are some cool peeps here but its a slow go...like i said there's lots of money here.

i personally don't care for too much rain ie. pdx or seattle. nor am i too fond of medford...ashland on the other hand is gorgeous. and because of that, like bend and marin, is very expensive to live in. sigh.

lots to do and see in bend area though...i would recommend it.

[doublyblessed]

Originally Posted by fourlittlebirds

If you are planning to visit Corvallis let me know, we have weekly park days and an occasional brunch that would be a good casual way to meet people. Are you going to the Life is Good Conference? Plenty of Oregon unschoolers will be there too!

ooo. i want more info on thie life is good conference! i'm in bend. i'll google it.

[Ahimsa]

Lastest Update!

We are moving to Corvallis next week! :

I was looking for places in Portland, but things just weren't coming together right, so I started to reconsider Corvallis, as well as, Eugene. I started looking for housing in both places. An affordable place in Corvallis opened up for me. I feel like it is meant to be. I am really excited, and I am looking forward to discovering Corvallis and Oregon. I can't wait to meet the the Corvallis mammas that posted here. :

On another note, in order to afford this move, I have had to sell and give away all our stuff. We are flying there with just our clothes and some blankets. If any of you Corvallis mammas have any household items or furniture that you don't want or need or have to lend, we would greatly appreciate it.

[Serendipity]

Originally Posted by Ahimsa

We are moving to Corvallis next week! :

I was looking for places in Portland, but things just weren't coming together right, so I started to reconsider Corvallis, as well as, Eugene. I started looking for housing in both places. An affordable place in Corvallis opened up for me. I feel like it is meant to be. I am really excited, and I am looking forward to discovering Corvallis and Oregon. I can't wait to meet the the Corvallis mammas that posted here. :

On another note, in order to afford this move, I have had to sell and give away all our stuff. We are flying there with just our clothes and some blankets. If any of you Corvallis mammas have any household items or furniture that you don't want or need or have to lend, we would greatly appreciate it.

What an adventure, good luck and congratulations!

[Ahimsa]

Originally Posted by Serendipity

What an adventure, good luck and congratulations!

Thank you!

[umami_mommy]

Originally Posted by Ahimsa

On another note, in order to afford this move, I have had to sell and give away all our stuff. We are flying there with just our clothes and some blankets. If any of you Corvallis mammas have any household items or furniture that you don't want or need or have to lend, we would greatly appreciate it.

i just wanted to say how wonderful this sounds. i am married to a collector and sometimes hoarder and sometimes i feel so oppressed by our *stuff.*

it's so cool you were able to do this and i wish i lived in OR so i could share with you.

check out thrift stores, craig's list and freecycle. i bet if you post on freecycle, there are a lot of people who will share with you. local HS groups would likely share with you.

best of luck.

[Savoir Faire]

I know you said not dry...but I just moved from Houston....where it was super humid. I'll take dry any day. That being said, I just have to throw Tucson into the mix for others.

It is a surprisingly green city-- lots of trees and bushes-- doesn't seem very deserty to me. Lots of outdoor things to do here-- plenty of hiking in mountains and many museums and such.

The laws here are very lax-- but I come from Texas where you don't even have to notify. Speaking of Texas-- you might want to try Austin....

And, haha, you don't have to worry about it getting cold here....though most of the year isn't "desert hot" like you'd think.

[JennifaBest]

Oregon would also be tops on our list if we wanted to move.

Right now we live near Everett, WA (about an hour North of Seattle) and it's pretty awesome. We have a great community of AP and unschooling families. We're not too far from the city, but also close to all the farmland in Skagit County to the North of us. Plus beaches and mountains close by. We also have a pretty good natural foods co-op, plenty of great naturopaths. And an ever-expanding giant LLL group.

[Ahimsa]

Originally Posted by umami_mommy

i just wanted to say how wonderful this sounds. i am married to a collector and sometimes hoarder and sometimes i feel so oppressed by our *stuff.*

it's so cool you were able to do this and i wish i lived in OR so i could share with you.

check out thrift stores, craig's list and freecycle. i bet if you post on freecycle, there are a lot of people who will share with you. local HS groups would likely share with you.

best of luck.

It was nice to get rid of everything to start fresh. The only thing I couldn't let go of was my collection of parenting and childbirth books. My parents are storing my books for me.

I am checking all those places you mentioned. Plus, I have a friend in Eugene that is a massage therapist. He has been telling his clients I am moving there, and has managed to get me a few things to start me off. I am trusting that everything will come together, and the universe will provide everything I need. :

[Savoir Faire]

Originally Posted by Marimami

Actually, there are pockets of very crunchy/progressive areas of NC...most notably the Carrboro/Chapel Hill parts of the Triangle and around Asheville.

Holli

Yeah....I don't get it...just because it is in the Southern States doesn't make it not progressive. I lived in Durham and found the area very crunchy and beautiful. I second the Carrboro/Chapel Hill rec.

[hahamommy]

Originally Posted by Ahimsa

We are moving to Corvallis next week! :

Welcome! : I think you'll like it here, we sure do!
We've been here almost 2 years; I can't imagine living anywhere else
Be sure and let us know when you arrive, so we can have a brunch at Sunnyside Up for ya! And we're about to have game night at *my* new house - good timing!

There were cool unschoolers from Boulder at the LIFE is Good conference! I know they exist -- almost anywhere!

[bente]

This is on my mind too these days!

Right now we are in Spain, Mallorca. I love it here. Beaches, mountains...there is so much to explore. Plus I really like the general "outside" mentality of the spaniards. They don't spend alot of time inside their houses. There is a really cool energy here. I don't speak spanish very well at all, and I know that as soon as that was in place, life here would be much richer. But still, it is an international place and you could easily live here all your life without learning much more than "shopping spanish" if you wanted. There is not really a big unschooling community here - a few homeschoolers, and some more unschoolish than others. But I find that it is not as important. The weather (wich is wonderful) makes life easy. We are all pretty social, and outgoing so we make friends easily. The kids have really good friendships here, but they always end up playing with kids who are out and about on the playgrounds, at the plaza etc. And more importantly, I don't feel like an alian when I am out with 3 kids during school time or in the evenings. I also get an easier time because I am a foreigner, and they expect me to have a different culture.

We live in Norway, and that is NOT my favorite place, for sure. It is beautiful, safe and family friendly...but NOT unschool friendly. I dunno, lots of factors, could be the socialist-democrat mindset

I grew up in Austin, TX and that is where the unschool seed was planted. I love that place. I often think of how easy life would be for us if we moved back - socially. Then there are things that would be harder. It is a toss up.

[Nani]

Originally Posted by bente

This is on my mind too these days!

Right now we are in Spain, Mallorca. I love it here.

Mallorca IS very cool! It's also a big artists hangout. Sounds like a great deal, island living without the barriers of "normal" insular island mentality.
How did you come to live there?

[bente]

Originally Posted by Nani

Mallorca IS very cool! It's also a big artists hangout. Sounds like a great deal, island living without the barriers of "normal" insular island mentality.
How did you come to live there?

Yes, Mallorca is cool There are so many interesting people, and lots of really good energy. I assume one would not get the same vibe at the tourist traps, but really, so little of the island is resorts and you never see it unless you seek it out. And the prettiest places here have not been taken over by highrise hotels.

We live in Norway, but stay here 3 months out of the year - we connected with another homeschool family here, and they invited us to visit. From there it has become an annual thing, and our circle has grown. The goal is to spend more time here, maybe split it 50/50 with Norway. Dh's work keeps him in Norway for a while longer, but hopefully more flexibility in the future. We both really like it here - the kids are in heaven

[NamastePlatypus]

I can't wait to move back to ATL, good museums, the mountains are like an hour or so north, the beach is about three hours south, ALOT of nature areas.

I would love to move back to St. Louis. SOOOO many nature centers there with cool stuff to do at them, alot of stuff to do for free or really cheap, museums, food, AWESOME houses....